Starbucks’ holiday drinks are FINALLY here!
I don’t know about you, but there is just something about those festive cups that instantly makes my day brighter!
Unfortunately, most of these drinks come with a ton of sugar and not much else.
If you’re diabetic or have prediabetes, this can seem a little discouraging. But don’t worry! With a few modifications, everyone can participate in the festivities!
In this blog post, I am going to be breaking down all the holiday drinks Starbucks has to offer. I will also walk step-by-step how to make them diabetic friendly so that it doesn’t spike your blood sugar!
What Are The Holiday Drinks At Starbucks In 2022?
The holiday beverage lineup for 2022 at Starbucks includes the following drinks: caramel brulee latte, peppermint mocha, chestnut praline latte, toasted white chocolate mocha, iced sugar cookie almond milk latte, and Irish cream cold brew.
There currently is no diabetic friendly holiday drink at Starbucks that you can order straight off the menu.
Caramel Brulee Latte
I am very partial to the caramel brulee latte. It is by far my favorite drink!
A grande caramel brulee latte comes with two shots of espresso, steamed 2% milk, 4 pumps of caramel brulee sauce, whipped cream and caramel topping.
A grande caramel brulee latte has 410 calories, 48g of sugar, and 14g of fat.
To make this drink diabetic friendly, I would recommend changing the 2% milk to almond milk. Then, I would decrease the amount of caramel brulee sauce pumps from 4 to 2. Next, I would remove the whipped cream and caramel topping.
This brings your latte down to just 17g of sugar!
Peppermint Mocha
The peppermint mocha is a classic combination of holiday flavors.
A grande peppermint mocha comes with two shots of espresso, steamed 2% milk, 4 pumps of mocha sauce, 4 pumps of peppermint syrup, whipped cream and chocolate curls topping.
All of those syrups, whipped cream and toppings will put your drink at 54g of sugar.
The best way to make this drink diabetic friendly would be to replace the 2% milk with almond milk, reduce the amount of mocha sauce and peppermint syrup to one pump each, and to remove the chocolate curls and whipped cream.
By doing this, your drink will go from 54g of sugar to 13g of sugar.
Chestnut Praline Latte
The chestnut praline latte comes with two shots of espresso, steamed 2% milk, 4 pumps chestnut praline syrup, chestnut praline topping, and whipped cream. It also has 38g of sugar.
To reduce the amount of sugar, I would reduce the amount of chestnut praline syrup, remove the chestnut praline topping, and remove the whipped cream.
Each pump of chestnut praline syrup has 7g of sugar, so by reducing the pumps of syrup from 4 to 2, you are going to be taking out 14g of sugar alone!
Toasted White Chocolate Mocha
The toasted white chocolate mocha comes with two shots of espresso, steamed 2% milk, 4 pumps of toasted white chocolate mocha sauce, holiday sugar sparkles, and whipped cream.
To make this drink diabetic friendly, I would reduce the amount of toasted white chocolate mocha sauce. I would also remove the holiday sugar sparkles and the whipped cream.
At this point, you may be seeing a pattern on how to modify drinks and you are exactly correct. To make most drinks diabetic friendly at Starbucks is usually as simple as removing the items in it that contain sugar.
Iced Sugar Cookie Almond Milk Latte
If you’re looking to order something right off the menu, I would recommend the iced sugar cookie almond milk latte.
This drink has 25g of sugar, making it one of the less sugary drinks on the holiday lineup.
However, if you’re looking to reduce this amount even further, I would suggest reducing the amount of sugar cookie syrup pumps from 4 to 2. This will leave your drink at 15g of sugar.
Irish Cream Cold Brew
The Irish Cream Cold Brew is a cold brew with Irish cream syrup and Irish cream cold foam on top.
Like the iced sugar almond milk latte, this drink also doesn’t have too much sugar as is. If you order it right off the menu without adjustments, you’ll be looking at 24g of sugar.
But, if you do decide to modify the sugar content here, I would just remove the Irish cream syrup. The cold foam provides enough of that Irish cream flavor that I don’t think you’ll miss the syrup much.
This will take your drink from 24g of sugar to 9g of sugar.
General Tips For Balancing Blood Sugar
I tell all my clients who want to manage their blood sugar to make sure they are pairing their foods adequately.
For example, let’s say you decide to get one of these drinks the next time you’re at Starbucks.
You know that drinking it by itself will spike your blood sugar. So how do you lower it? With protein!
Pairing your drink with a protein packed choice, such as the sous-vide egg bites, will really help to blunt that blood sugar spike.
Conclusion:
I hope this post about diabetic friendly drinks at Starbucks was helpful for you! If you do end up trying any of these drinks, be sure to let me know in the comments how it was! Of course, you can also tag me on Instagram @lorin_eats_texas!
If you liked this post, you may want to check out some of my other Starbucks posts, such as my Homemade Starbucks Iced Green Tea recipe or my hack to make your caramel macchiato cheaper!
If you want to learn more about what Starbucks is offering this holiday season, you can visit their Stories and News page here!
